Weston-super-Mare
Dramatic Society
The Man Who Came to Dinner by Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman
Performed at Weston-super-Mare Playhouse : May 25th - 29th 1976 including Saturday matinee
CAST
Mrs. Ernest W. Stanley JOY WILKINSON
Miss Preen PAMELA LINHAM
Richard Stanley JOHN BUTLER
June Stanley ROSEMARY WILKINSON
John PETER LIGHTWOOD
Sarah TERESINHA MORTON-HICKS
Mrs. Dexter MARGARET HORLER
Mr. Ernest W. Stanley GERALD WHITE
Maggie Cutler LESLEY BLACKWELL
Dr. Bradley IAN YEOMAN
Sheridan Whiteside PAUL DENING
Harriet Stanley BOBBIE ROBERTSON
Bert Jefferson MICHAEL YARDE
The Luncheon Guests { ANTHONY LAY
{ IAN PITT
Mr. Baker GARTH D. SMITH
Expressman JAMES NIPPER
Lorraine Sheldon SALLY ALFORD
Sandy DAVE JACKMAN
Beverly Carlton HAYDN DURANT
Westcott CAMERON ELLIOTT
Radio Technicians { TIMOTHY HESS
{ TIMOTHY HORLER
Carol Singers JENNIFER GAY, ALISON GRIGG, DAVID HEMMING,
PETER JONES, SUZY PLANK,
CAROLINE PRICE,
KELVIN PRICE
Banjo BRIAN S. MORTON-HICKS
Two Deputies { ANTHONY LAY
{ IAN PITT
A Plainclothes Man JOHN HORLER
PRODUCTION
Producer DAVID HEMMING
Stage Manager BILL RIMMER
Assistant Stage Manager NICK RIMMER
Production Assistant MARY HUGHES
Property Mistresses SANDRA ROSS
and SHIRLEY McMAHON
Assisted by NICKY PURSEY
and FELICITY STIDDARD
Wardrobe TERESINHA MORTON-HICKS
Prompt JOAN FISHER
Publicity NAN HESS
Scenery JAMES FREDRICKS STUDIOS
Music for Beverly Carlton's song
Written by GRETA PLANK
The Cast of "The Man Who Came to Dinner"
REVIEW - Bristol Evening Post Tuesday May 26th 1976 - PAUL IN THE OLD ROUTINE
The Man Who Came To Dinner: Playhouse, Weston-super-Mare
Weston's Dramatic Society's production of this comedy represents a milestone in the acting career of the star, Paul Dening.
For with it he celebrates 60 years on the amateur stage, and has the opportunity to get to grips once again with a part he played ten years ago.
His performance as Sheridan Whiteside, a crusty and egotistical literary superstar, forced through injury, to convalesce at the home of a mid-American family, gives him the opportunity to show off his vast experience.
Delightful
But at the same time I felt he needed his delivery, which tended to be too much on one level.
However it is a marathon performance, which calls for him to be on stage nearly all the time, and he handles it well.
So, too, do the rest of the large cast, especially the members of the household Whiteside takes over.
Gerald White as the frustrated head of the family, and Joy Wilkinson as his wife both turn in delightful performances, and Bobbie Robertson shines as the off-beat Harriett Stanley.
Lesley Blackwell gives a polished portrayal of Maggie Cutler, Whiteside's put-upon secretary, and Sally Alford adds glamour as filmstar Lorraine Sheldon.
Although set in America, producer David Hemming has wisely opted for the performers to stick to their own voices, rather than assume phoney accents.
The show, with its effective set and lighting, runs until Saturday. AW
REVIEW - Western Daily Press Wednesday May 27th 1976 - MORE BITE NEEDED
Weston-super-Mare Playhouse: "The Man Who Came To Dinner," presented by Weston Dramatic Society
Sheridan Whiteside, an "extremely important man of letters," slips and breaks his hip while dining at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Ernest Stanley.
And this unfortunate accident has repercussions on the household they never imagined.
For a start the invalid is forced to stay at their home while his broken bones knit, and in so doing completely takes over the running of the household, and exerts influence over its members.
The important role of Whiteside is a fitting one for veteran performer Paul Dening, who this year celebrates 60 years involvement with the amateur stage.
Confident
He is a solid performer, with plenty of experience, but I felt this man who came to dinner needed a little more spice and bite in his delivery.
The play has a large cast of 34, and they all cope admirably. Joy Wilkinson and Gerald White as the put-upon Mr. and Mrs. Stanley both give relaxed, confident performances, while Lesley Blackwell as Whiteside's secretary shows she is an actress of real merit.
There are some strong performances too from Bobbie Robertson, as Mr. Stanley's odd-ball sister, and Sally Alford as superstar Lorraine Sheldon.
Producer David Hemming has marshalled his players extremely ably, and although the play is set in America has wisely opted for them to stick to their own voices rather than adopt phoney Yankee accents.
This light-hearted show, which has obviously been given a lot of care and attention, runs until Saturday. ANDREW WHITE
Bequest to the Nation by Terrence Rattigan
Performed at Weston-super-Mare Playhouse : November 16th - 20th 1976 including Saturday matinee
CAST
George Matcham Snr DON MacGREGOR
Katherine Matcham BRENDA WHITE
Betsy MARGARET HORLER
George Matcham Jnr MICHAEL DERRETT-DAVIES
Emily MARY HUGHES
Frances, Lady Nelson LESLEY BLACKWELL
Nelson JOHN BUTLER
Lord Barham IAN YEOMAN
Emma Hamilton PAMELA LINHAM
Francesca NATALIE BOOTH
Lord Minto GERALD WHITE
Captain Hardy ANTHONY LAY
Rev. William Nelson MICHAEL YARDE
Sarah Nelson HEATHER GADD
Horatio TIMOTHY HESS
Captain Blackwood PETER LIGHTWOOD
Maids JULIE WHITE & JANE FEAR
"Bequest to the Nation" Poster
PRODUCTION
Director DAVID HEMMING
Stage Manager BILL RIMMER
Property Mistresses ANNE HIGGS and SHIRLEY McMAHON
Wardrobe DAUPHINE HIRE, BRISTOL
Prompt MARGARET WRIGHT
Set Design JOHN BUTLER
Scenery Society Members
Additional Scenery JAMES FREDRICKS STUDIO
Furniture BRISTOL OLD VIC HIRE
Continuity SANDRA ROSS
Publicity DAVID HEMMING
The Cast of "Bequest to the Nation"
The Cast of "Bequest to the Nation"
(Back) Peter Lightwood
(Front) Pam Linham, John Butler, Lesley Blackwell, Gerald White, Tony Lay
REVIEW - Western Daily Press Wednesday November 17th 1976 - INSIGHT ON LORD NELSON
The Weston-super-Mare Dramatic Society, with Terence Rattigan's Bequest to the Nation, attempts to solve a problem of personal relationship at Weston Playhouse this week.
The play poses an enigma in the domestic life of Lord Nelson - just what was it that attracted him to Lady Hamilton?
The answer to the question remains obscure, not because the players fail to be eloquent - but because Mr. Rattigan is inexplicit.
What is very clear indeed, is that the Society has succeeded in presenting a serious play with great insight into character and atmosphere.
This production, by David Hemming, deserves to attract much larger audiences than the one which the players almost outnumbered last night. EH
REVIEW - Bristol Evening Post Thursday November 18th 1976 - ENGLAND EXPECTS . . . A SUCCESS
Weston-super-Mare Playhouse : "Bequest to the Nation," by Terence Rattigan, Weston Dramatic Society.
The domestic life of Lord Nelson is explored in depth and the question posed is quite simple - what could there have been about Emma, Lady Hamilton, that turned him on?
Very little, according to the impression given by Mr. Rattigan, and heightened by Pamela Linham, who plays Emma revealingly, in more ways than one.
John Butler fills the uniform and demands of the role with suitable frailty - one wonders how he hopes to cope with Emma.
Lesley Blackwell plays Frances, Lady Nelson, with warmth and sensitivity, and Brenda White has just the right bite of tittle-tattle venom in her Katherine Matcham.
Gerald White injects authority into Lord Minto, and Don MacGregor brings a certain petulance to George Matcham.
David Hemming has successfully produced a serious play with a serious intent.
It deserves better houses between now and Saturday than the first night. Eric Hopkinson
REVIEW - Weston Mercury, Somerset & Avon Herald Friday November 19th 1976 - NELSON'S PRIVATE EAR AND PRIVATE EYE
A welcome change from the lightweight material seen
this year at Weston's Playhouse is Bequest to the Nation,
imaginatively presented this week by Weston-super-Mare
Dramatic Society.
The play is Terrence Rattigan's idea of how one of
Britain's most heroic figures - Lord Nelson - reconciled
his public life with his private relationship with Emma
Hamilton. It also emphasises the point that, although
they were apart for long periods, Emma was a
significant influence in Nelson's life and, despite all her
drunken vulgarity, an irresistible attraction for him.
What, then, was her magnetism? The play, in fact, is
as much about Emma as it is about the infatuated
Admiral and perhaps, it is Emma who emerges as the
more credible character in this series of dramatic
anecdotes.
The role of the women behind great men has always attracted speculation and makes excellent literary and dramatic material. The conflict between love and duty appeals to a wide audience and Rattigan is one of our most highly-skilled playwrights, whose variations on this theme have been much acclaimed.
Weston Dramatic's production is an exciting piece of theatre - and that is more than you can say for the fare which Weston's amateurs have been serving up lately, for all the box office considerations.
Emma may have stopped accepting money for her favours but she is still a lusty, uninhibited, foul-mouthed wanton and few concessions are made to twentieth-century delicacy in this extrovert production.
Pamela Linham wins my admiration for the determination and sensitivity with which she tackles this difficult role. Between the moments of sluttish exuberance there is real pathos and emotion and,to encompass so many moods in sometimes a solo performance is an achievement for any amateur actress.
John Butler broods inscrutably as Nelson. He loses his temper when his wishes are thwarted, is clearly single-minded in his opinion of naval strategy and will put his mistress and her bed before almost anything - certainly his private image. The historian can argue over how much is speculation and how much truth.
He is the more impressive because of his friends' and Emma's devotion but alone he still appears an enigmatic and solitary figure - just as he is amid the pigeons of Trafalgar Square.
Anthony Lay contributes an interesting study of Hardy, contemptuous of Emma but respectful to his Admiral. Michael Derrett-Davies adds more detail to the portrait with his playing of Nelson's nephew and Gerald White's Minto reveals another aspect of his curious paradox. Lesley Blackwell conveys the anguish of Lady Nelson but, again, the character remains elusive.
The fact that the play appears to reach its peak about 30 minutes before the final curtain is due to Rattigan but the players must beware of the feeling of anti-climax. Even the death scene tableau and the theatrical battle effects could not stop the slide on the opening night. If this play is about Nelson's private life, then it seems appropriate to end it on a dramatically effective personal note and I think the scissors could well be introduced at this point - with a cut to the "bequest" scene which is a postscript to the story.
David Hemming's production has excellent qualities of stillness and thought and John Butler's adaptable setting adds to the pleasure of a refreshingly lively and absorbing evening. R.M.D.
